


I Took My Turn

by ketomax



Series: Of Faces, Drums, and All Things Bigger Than Us [2]
Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Dubious Science, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Friends to Enemies to Begrudging Teammate, Holding Hands, Praxis References, Pre-Threesome, TARDIS Backseat Driver, cacophony
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-30
Updated: 2020-01-30
Packaged: 2021-02-27 14:01:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,443
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22478329
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ketomax/pseuds/ketomax
Summary: Now she's found Jack, there's one more person the Doctor needs to find. She's searching all of time and space and ends up right in the firing line. Jabs, prods, bickering- what's new when the Master is concerned?
Relationships: Thirteenth Doctor/The Master (Dhawan)
Series: Of Faces, Drums, and All Things Bigger Than Us [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1615624
Comments: 5
Kudos: 112





	I Took My Turn

Of all the colours in the universe, the Doctor believes blue to be the most calming. Coral gives way to radiant crystal that could reflect her mood and she’s immensely proud of her ship for sneakily growing the majestic columns of Gallifreyan crystal over time without her knowing. Then again, her ship often knows what she needs better than she does- arguing with the TARDIS got her nowhere at best and looking like a mad woman at worst.

Her TARDIS console hums quietly in her ear bringing her back to the present and she smiles, enjoying the alone time.  The Doctor's slender fingers drum against the console idly,  one two three four, matching the intrinsic beat of time and space flowing around her as she searches.

And searches.

_ And searches. _

She expects nothing, but wishes for everything; her breath hitches in her throat as the Doctor waits patiently for some kind of noise, blip, anything. 

Meanwhile, Jack was back with the fam hopefully getting along. It wasn’t the Captain’s first choice by far but he relents and gives her time alone to look for the Master. His view of the Time Lord is coloured from the time spent aboard the Valiant, but if the Doctor feels that strongly about him there’s no will on in this entire universe that can stop her.

She knows Jack's not happy about it, but she’s grateful he trusts her enough to let it slide. “Maybe you’re right Doctor,” she remembers he says, “maybe he has changed,” and every time they end the conversation Jack sighs deeply, and she knows it’s not over, not by a long shot.

The look that the fam and the good Captain give her every time she pops out to search is bad enough; as much as they try to understand she knows they may never fully grasp why the Master is this important to her.

And still she searches. 

By now, she was beginning to lose hope. The Doctor knows there is precious little place in the universe for anyone to hide that she wouldn’t know of- and the fear that this time she may have lost him for good was too much for her hearts to bear.  The Doctor tries to feel for his presence without the TARDIS but picks up nothing but dead air. 

She begins to drift a little, mind wandering to thoughts she thought she had locked away. The Doctor has seen so much that she can barely remember the order of her own history. It’s a jumbled mess, not unlike  querency sticks unceremoniously dumped in box by an uncaring time tot; it can take her a while to sit and order everything and it’s easier to do while alone like this. However, before she can even get started arranging the fragments of her history into place like the well-ordered sticks in a game of Harmony, the TARDIS lights up the screen in front of her, nearly blinding her.

She stands up fully, startled at the intensity. “ Ngk \- do you mind? I was thinking!” she huffs indignant, chiding the TARDIS while rubbing at her eyes. The quiet beep of the dot flickering across the screen quickly drew her ire away and she follows it across the screen with her finger. “What’s that? What  _ is _ that?” her voice wavers a little in confusion as she grabs the screen and brings it further up for a better examination. Cogs are turning and she bites her lip as she swipes in the readings and tracking info, scanning it for anything of use. “Whatever  _ it  _ is, is using a massive amount of energy to keep that up,” the Doctor begins to type furiously, plotting a course to intercept it mid trajectory. She’s well versed in risky strategies, and this was no different.

The Doctor couldn’t let herself believe it was him; she couldn’t bear to be disappointed not after everything else she’d been through recently. Her hearts beat loudly in her ears and she runs to the doors, grasps the handles and swings them open with very little trepidation and stares out into the expanse of space and holds her breath; not out of necessity, but anxiety. She’s the woman who stares into the darkness and vastness of open space and waits.

She can see it approaching- fast.

Too fast.

_ Way too fast! _

Before she realises what’s going on it hits the TARDIS shields, slows, and she’s knocked off her feet and is thrown back against the console; the weight on her chest leaves her winded and gasping for breath. On top of her in a dishevelled heap is the familiar black hair and gaudy purple jacket that’s even a touch too dramatic for her tastes; the whole body frosted with the coldness of space which seemed to disappear before her very eyes due to the warmth of the TARDIS’ interior. Using what little strength she had left the Doctor sits up and holds her head trying to ignore the ache, and she shifts the Master off her lap for dignity’s sake, although for who’s dignity she wasn’t completely sure. She notices the emergency facemask and pries it off, hearing the hiss of decompression taking place and she tosses it to the side. It clatters to the floor by his foot and she breaths deep, waiting for him to open his eyes.

What feels like the longest minute of her life passes and she feels herself begin to panic, the concussion slowing her reflexes down to an almost pitiful level. “Master, come on, don’t do this to me, don’t you dare- I've had enough of you dying in my arms to last a life time!” her voices raises as she begins to shake, and she begins to grab him by the shoulders and gently shakes him. “Don’t you die on me,  Koschei Oakdown , or so help  me - ”

A loud gasp startles her and he begins to stir, suddenly sitting bolt upright and wincing almost immediately. “ _ Ow _ , my head,” he holds it, groaning, body getting used to breathing all on its own again. “That’s nasty stuff... stone age tech... one step above stones and bowls...” the Master grumbles to himself, voice scratchy and dry from the coldness of space and he kicks the mask aside with his foot, displeased.

“Oit. It saved your life, and you’re welcome, by the way. Where the hell have you been?!” The Doctor turns from grateful to cross in a split second, but it’s clear in her eyes that it’s not anger for anger’s sake- it's worry. No heirs and graces now, not when they’ve danced around each other for too long now to bother with pleasantries. Her hands rest on her hips, trying to form some sort of cross persona but she knows it isn’t really working.

The Master groans yet again, and shifts to sit up against the console hearing the TARDIS hiss angrily at him. Hot cold hot cold- and he thought Lolita was a fickle being. “You haven’t used my name in ages, Doctor. Getting sentimental again are we?” he coos, knowing it will rile her up even more and his grin shows he takes great pleasure in doing so. “Always were the soft one.”

The Doctor snaps her fingers and shuts the TARDIS doors, before moving to the monitors to plot a course back to Earth to break the news to Jack and the fam. “I’ve been looking for you for weeks... months. I refused to give up... I saw  Gallifrey .”

“I know. I got a read receipt on my message, you know,” he raises an eyebrow, rolls his eyes, and gets to his feet. “I’m surprised... you’re going to undo my work, Doctor? Is that your plan? They deserved it.” What she says next she knows will shock him and she makes sure to look him dead in the eyes when she does it.

“Agreed.” Her voice doesn’t waver. “I knew... from day one, it was wrong. I’ve seen it before, I tried to forget. But once you’ve seen... that, you can’t undo it.” The Doctor watches his face, just like she did Jack’s for any inkling of information, any giveaway. She’s disappointed when he doesn’t give her anything.

The Master snorts a little, dusting himself down from his jaunt in outer space and tilts his head at her. “You don’t expect me to believe... wait, what did you just say, Doctor?” he pauses confused, not expecting that and it took him a few seconds to process her words. “Wait, wait  wait _ wait _ . You agree with me? Did you hit your head  _ that _ hard on the controls?” he stands there in front of her, looking almost indignant, confused at the outcome he had managed to somehow create. He really doesn’t expect her to agree, and it’s thrown him for six.

Now it’s her turn to roll her eyes, the dull thumping of her head a mere background noise compared to the energy between them both. “ Rassilon did this, no real surprise there, and hid it from us all these years and all of  Gallifrey was complicit including you and I!” she snaps frustrated and points a finger at him wiggling it slightly for effect, “but we can fix this, put this right, rationality and irrationality can’t stay separated forever and we have got to do something before every single universe out there begins to tear itself apart under the strain.” The Doctor stops right in front of him, “Are you with me, because if you’re not, I’m doing it anyway.” Her face is the very picture of determined, and she soon feels the need to get moving again, back round to the monitors without even waiting for his answer.

It leaves him open mouthed, confused, and he follows her around the console, all kinds of potential brewing. “You’re not  _ seriously  _ going to take on Cacophony, are you?”

She smirks and winks a little, “That got your attention, didn’t it? Has your desire for curiosity won out over your desire to do ridiculous things to get my attention yet?” the Doctor raises an eyebrow and waits for an answer. She still maintains that the Cheetah world left a feline imprint on him, the need for attention was just too great.

Her eyes drift over him and she can see that he hates the situation, it’s as if he’s having an internal war  with himself and  finally he huffs, folds his arms and gives in regretfully. The Master  rolls his eyes again and  bounces his head a little as he speaks, “Alright  alright okay, you win this round, Doctor, one point to you .”

“I win all the rounds, and I do points, points are my thing! You can’t do that,”  she grins, wider and wider, the joy beginning to bubble up and spring forth . The Doctor reaches out for his hand and in her surprise,  he doesn’t move and  she grasps his hand, feeling  the warmth and pulls him closer into a hug.

It takes a  few seconds before he gives in,  wrapping his arms around her and grins, enjoying the fact he’s  taller than his greatest friend and enemy.  “You really are soft, Theta.”

Her face lights up even more, if that was at all possible, and she leans forward and gives him a quick peck on the nose, watching his cheeks flush an adorable shade of pink. The Doctor quickly backs up almost bouncing on her heels as she watches him have a crisis, spluttering to himself about how ridiculous she was, how absurd, how out of line, and how he was very much going to make her pay for that ridiculous act of human intimacy. She’s pretty sure she hears him swear in  Gallifreyan but she lets him have just that one.

The Doctor taps the console and starts pressing buttons, flicking levers, and sets the rotor in motion. “Well, let’s get back, but first some ground rules- One, no murder. Two, no hurting my fam, got that? And three, the hardest one of all, absolutely under no circumstances do you  _ ever _ torment the good Captain. Jack is my responsibility,” she rattles off, listing them on her fingers before she’s interrupted and looks up at the Master.

“ Responsibility? Like a pet? Oh Doctor, that’s low,” he tuts, and waggles a finger,  finally over and done with  with his mini tantrum.

Her face is the very picture of a frown and she pouts, and yet somehow still maintains her golden aura. “You know exactly what I mean, don’t try me  Koschei Oakdown or you and I are going to really fall out. Now listen, I mean it, don’t bite to anything he says, and absolutely no antagonising him! And on that, don’t antagonise my fam either; I don’t expect you to apologise because we all know you won’t and it’ll just come across as insincere,” she rolls her eyes and folds her arms, adopts the firm stance she knows will probably tickle his sense of humour- it was one he outright banned from British politics when he had his stint many lifetimes ago- and continues, “but if you double-cross me I absolutely will drop you into Krop Tor myself.”

He makes a cross over his heart and purses his lips, “Oh, I promise, don’t you worry your pretty little hearts Doctor, you have my word, I’m just too curious to see how badly this is going to go wrong! Cacophony is the stuff of time tot nightmares!” the Master coos and leans against the column giving her a curious look. This was going to be quite the interesting trip.

They land and she heads out first, just to check the coast is clear. “Come on, troublemaker. It’s time to get a move on...” the Doctor brushes her hair behind her ear and shows off the shimmering jewellery that she had  forged  from the heart of a dying star. “ No running off.”

He cross es his heart again,  “Promise! ” the Master steps out and is incredibly glad to see the sun again, not that he would say anything out loud. “ I can’t wait to say hi all over again!”

And with that, the silence erupted into absolute chaos, as  Yaz , Ryan, Graham, and Jack  all begun to speak at once.

“You found him ?! ” Yaz splutters.

“ Why would you bring him here?!” Ryan  adds.

“ He tried to kill us! ” Graham  points a finger.

“At least it’s a new face .” Jack relents and folds his arms,  groaning.

All the Doctor can do is just smile broadly. She knows she’s going to have her hands full, and keeps hold of the Master’s hand behind her back. 

**Author's Note:**

> Here's part two in the series- next one up is where they need to spend time... together.


End file.
